The baseball is a passion of the Japanese. The sport is watched and practiced by millions of Nippon fans, and its success extends to various provinces of the archipelago. In this article, we will get to know the main baseball teams in Japan.
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Koshien and the industrial leagues
One of the most significant events with enormous popular appeal is the Koshien (甲子園), which, besides being the name of the main stadium of the competition, is often the name given to the national high school baseball tournament. Teams of young talents from all over the country compete in this tournament. Koshien is frequently mentioned in Japanese pop culture, especially in anime, manga, and films. The audience for the event is huge, and the competition is highly valued.
In addition to the various high school baseball teams, there are also teams from the industrial leagues, representing famous companies such as Yamaha and many others.
The professional teams of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB)
The professional baseball league in Japan is the Nippon Professional Baseball League (NPB), also known as Puro Yakyuu (プロ野球) and has existed since 1950, although there was already a professional tournament since 1936 (under a different name). Currently, the NPB is organized as follows:
- The teams are divided into two main leagues: The Pacific League and the Central League, each with 6 teams.
- The Pacific League consists of Saitama Seibu Lions, Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, Orix Buffaloes, Chiba Lotte Marines, and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
- The Central League is made up of Hiroshima Toyo Carp, Tokyo Yakult Swallows, Chunichi Dragons, Hanshin Tigers, Yomiuri Giants, and Yokohama DeNA BayStars.
- Each team plays 144 games during the regular season.
- Interestingly, unlike what happens in MLB (Major League Baseball), a tie can indeed occur in an NPB game. A tie is declared if the score is tied after 12 innings.
- It is estimated that nearly 30 million (about 27 million) Japanese watch the NPB, and almost 50% (48%) have baseball as their favorite sport.
- The country has the best player in the world today: Shohei Ohtani.
- The most popular teams are: Yomiuri Giants, Hanshin Tigers, and Hiroshima Carp.
- Many Brazilians have played in Japanese baseball, such as: Henrique Shigeo Tamaki, Daniel Matsumoto, Reinaldo Sato, Thyago Vieira, Felipe Natel, Vitor Ito, among others.
Read also: Shohei Ohtani – The genius of world baseball
Below, you can learn more about each of the teams:
Yomiuri Giants
Central league team that plays at the Tokyo Dome (東京ドーム Tōkyō Dōmu) and is widely considered the greatest team in the history of Japan. It has 22 Nippon Series titles, being so far the team with the most tournaments won in the NPB. It has a huge fan base and many idols, including the legendary Sadaharu Oh, the “king of home runs”.
Hanshin Tigers
Another very traditional and popular baseball team. It has 2 Nippon Series titles, with the last one won in 2023. The first time the team won the tournament was in 1985. It usually holds its matches at Koshien Stadium, in Nishinomiya (Hyogo).
Hiroshima Carp
The Hiroshima Toyo Carp also has a large number of fans in Japan. The Brazilian pitcher Shigeo Henrique Tamaki played for over a decade with the Carp. They are part of the central league and have 3 Japan Series titles, one more than the Hanshin Tigers. They hold their matches at Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium Hiroshima, the municipal stadium of Hiroshima.
Yakult Swallows
It has had several Brazilians on its roster, including Daniel Matsumoto and Reinaldo Sato. It has 5 Japan Series titles and its stadium is Meiji Jingu Stadium (明治神宮野球場 Meiji Jingu Yakyuujou), located in Tokyo. The team’s mascot is a swallow.
Chunichi Dragons
Based in Nagoya, the Dragons are an old franchise, founded in 1936. It is characterized by its two mascots: a small Blue Dragon (Chunichi Dragons Shaolon) and a Koala (Chunichi Dragons Doala). It has accumulated 2 Japan Series titles in its history and its stadium is Vantelin Dome Nagoya バンテリンドーム ナゴヤ (Banterin Doomu Nagoya). It is also part of the Central League.
Yokohama BayStars
Since 2012, the BayStars have been managed by the online services company DeNA, which operates in the mobile and mobile platform sector. In their trophy room, they have 2 Japan Series titles (1960 and 1998), although they have not won again in 25 years.
Based in Kanagawa, the team plays at Yokohama Stadium and has as its mascot a Hamster with a star painted on its face. The main colors are white and blue.
Seibu Lions
The team where the Brazilian Bo Takahashi currently plays. It is the second greatest champion in history, with 13 Japan Series titles. It is among the teams that play in the Pacific League. Its main stadium is Seibu Dome (西武ドーム), located in Saitama.
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Champion of the Japan Series on only one occasion, in 2013. Brazilians have also been part of the team, such as Fernando Luciano and Shigeo Tamaki (Henrique Tamaki). The team’s headquarters is in Sendai, in Miyagi Prefecture, where they hold their matches (Miyagi Baseball Stadium).
Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters
Representing the northernmost island of the archipelago, the Ham Fighters have 3 Japan Series titles in their history and hold their matches at Sapporo Dome, which was inaugurated in 2001. The stadium is quite peculiar, with two fields (one for soccer and another for baseball), movable grass, and a design resembling a frog with its tongue out (the tongue being the soccer field, uncovered).
Orix Buffaloes
Resulting from the merger of Orix BlueWave with Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes. Ichiro Suzuki, one of the greatest legends of Japanese baseball, played for the team for nine seasons. The team, which has a buffalo as its mascot (the “buffalo bell”), has won the Japan Series five times, the last being in 2022. They hold their matches at Kyocera Dome Osaka Stadium (Osaka Dome), a futuristic stadium that has a capacity of over 50,000 people (51,000).
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
Representative of the Pacific League, it was bought by the SoftBank group in January 2005, when it became known as Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. Previously, the team was called Fukuoka Daiei Hawks (1988-2005) and Nankai Electric Railway Company (1938-1988). It has 11 Japan Series titles and holds its matches at Fukuoka Dome.
Chiba Lotte Marines
The last team in the Pacific League has 4 Japan Series titles and is based in the Chiba region, where it holds its games at ZOZO Marine Stadium (Chiba Marines Stadium). The mascot is a duck named Mar-kun (マーくん). There is also Zuu-chan (ズゥちゃん) and Riin-Chan (リーンちゃん), the female version of the mascot.
Useful pages about Japanese baseball
To learn more about Japanese baseball, I recommend that you follow the following pages on Instagram: @beiseboljapones and @reidasrebatidas.
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